Court: Barricaded suspects not entitled to Miranda warning

A Miranda warning is required only when the suspect is being interrogated while in custody

By Rafael Olmeda
The Sun-Sentinel

LIGHTHOUSE POINT, Fla. — Even a barricaded suspect has the right to remain silent during a standoff, but police have no obligation to tell him that while trying to coax him out, an appeals court ruled this week.

The decision comes from the 4th District Court of Appeal springs from a 2007 Broward case involving Erin Atac, who was holed up in his Lighthouse Point apartment as Broward Sheriff's deputies were about to arrest him in connection with the slaying of his father, Ustun Atac.

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Fifty years after the landmark Supreme Court decision in Miranda v. Arizona, rulings related to the 'right to remain silent' occur somewhat regularly.

During Atac's subsequent murder trial, defense lawyer David Bogenschutz attempted to keep those recordings away from the jury, arguing that Atac should have been informed of his right to remain silent and his right to have an attorney present during questioning.